Conning Inc. Purchases 80,386 Shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY)

Conning Inc. boosted its position in Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY - Free Report) by 13.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 676,087 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 80,386 shares during the period. Bristol-Myers Squibb accounts for about 1.2% of Conning Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Conning Inc.'s holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $34,621,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BMY. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Bristol-Myers Squibb in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 61.5% in the third quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 525 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.41% of the company's stock.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Stock Performance

Shares of BMY traded down $0.84 on Friday, reaching $48.28. 12,459,210 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,886,538. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market cap of $97.85 billion, a PE ratio of 12.51, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.39. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $51.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $51.75. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 52-week low of $47.58 and a 52-week high of $70.93.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.15. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a return on equity of 50.95% and a net margin of 17.83%. The company had revenue of $11.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.19 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.82 earnings per share. Bristol-Myers Squibb's revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. Bristol-Myers Squibb's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BMY has been the subject of several recent research reports. William Blair reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research note on Monday, April 1st. StockNews.com raised Bristol-Myers Squibb from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Societe Generale lowered Bristol-Myers Squibb from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Bristol-Myers Squibb from $58.00 to $51.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Bank of America lowered Bristol-Myers Squibb from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $60.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $61.12.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company Profile

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company discovers, develops, licenses, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products worldwide. It offers products for hematology, oncology, cardiovascular, immunology, fibrotic, and neuroscience diseases. The company's products include Eliquis for reduction in risk of stroke/systemic embolism in non-valvular atrial fibrillation, and for the treatment of DVT/PE; Opdivo for various anti-cancer indications, including bladder, blood, CRC, head and neck, RCC, HCC, lung, melanoma, MPM, stomach and esophageal cancer; Pomalyst/Imnovid for multiple myeloma; Orencia for active rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis; and Sprycel for the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia.